Monday, December 7, 2015

Top 5's of 2015 - Tim Durling!

2015 Year in Review

Wow, December again…that means it’s Top 5
time…now last year, Brad humoured me and let me post a bunch of KISS stuff
rather than an actual Top 5 album list, so this year I’ll play along.Also, as opposed to 2014, this year some of
my longtime favourite artists came out with some of their finest work in
years…in my opinion of course.I’m also
going to be completely shameless again, and under each of my reviews post a
link to my Tim’s Vinyl Confessions show on each topic.(Sorry, Gene Simmons is getting to me,
self-promote, self-promote, self-promote….)These aren’t really in any particular order.

HOLLYWOOD
VAMPIRES – Hollywood Vampires

This is basically a new Alice Cooper album
with a lot of special guests to say
the least.It’s also mostly a covers
album.You could even call it a concept album.The core musicians here are Alice himself,
Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, and actor/musician Johnny Depp, whom I have to admit, I
had no idea was such an accomplished guitarist.The album was also produced by longtime Alice collaborator Bob Ezrin,
who was partially responsible for refining the sound of the original A.C. band
and getting them on the radio (conversely, Alice Cooper’s albums also made
Ezrin a hit producer which led to him producing Kiss, Pink Floyd, and countless
others.)The name of the album and the
“band” stems from a group of celebrity drinking buddies dating back to the
1970s, of which Alice Cooper was a member.That group had a fluctuating lineup including some honorary members; notables
like John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Harry Nilsson, Mickey Dolenz, Bernie Taupin,
Keith Moon, etc.A lot of the “vamps”
including their guests are now dead of drug abuse and/or alcoholism so this
album was intended as a tribute to, as Alice lovingly refers to them in one of
only two original songs on here, “My Dead Drunk Friends.”The album kicks off with a grand narration
from Sir Christopher Lee (in his last recorded performance on musical album)
which is just perfect.Some of the other
covers aren’t exactly within the Vampires membership, but deceased musicians of
the same era, for instance they cover Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” in
memory of John Bonham (complete with co-lead vocals from AC/DC’s Brian
Johnson.)Alice has referred to Jimi
Hendrix and Jim Morrison as his “big brothers” when he and his bandmates first
came to Los Angeles, so they are saluted with covers of “Manic Depression” and
a medley of the Doors’ “Five-to-one/Break on Through.”Some other cool things happen along the way,
for instance another “Sir” appears, Paul McCartney, though not covering a
Beatles or a solo/Wings tune.No, Macca
provides vocals on a version of Badfinger’s “Come and Get it,” which only seems
odd until you’re reminded that he wrote that
song.A lot of the covers have already
been part of Alice’s set, for instance his mashup of his own “School’s Out”
with Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2),” which also features
another appearance by Brian Johnson.

I honestly wasn’t overly excited about this
release when I first became aware of it, but being a huge Alice fan I picked it
up and it is growing on me.My one gripe
is that I wish there were more original tunes on the album.At a running time of 48 minutes and change,
another 3 or 4 brand new songs would have improved the overall package, but
it’s still worth checking out if you’re a fan of any of the artists featured
here.

THE
DARKNESS – Last of Our Kind

A group that elicits “love ‘em/hate ‘em”
responses for sure, Lowestoft’s The Darkness returned in 2015 with a fantastic
new album.Justin Hawkins’s over-the-top
falsetto singing is still intact, so if those vocals turned you off when you
first heard them back in 2003, not much has changed.But if you’re like me and got past that
hurdle, this band has provided some of the best hard rock of the new
millennium.After their second album One Way Ticket to Hell…and Back in
2005, they splintered off into various projects, reuniting in 2012 with the
just-ok Hot Cakes, and now…they’re
back with an album that is in my opinion every bit as good as their first
two.A loose concept abounds here
telling mad tales of Vikings and whatnot, but don’t let that throw you…just put
this on and marvel that so few bands write songs like this anymore, hard rock
yet melodic, with great choruses and good, solid production.“Roaring Waters” sports a drum sound right
out of the mid-80s AC/DC catalogue, with a funky guitar riff that Joe Perry
would be proud to have written.The
title song reminds me of Boston, specifically “Peace of Mind.”That quirky Darkness sense of humour remains,
with the opening track “Barbarian” sporting a chorus of “waaa-ahh-ahh-ah-ah-ah-AH-ah-AH-ah-AHHHHH”
give or take an ‘h,’ “Mudslide” simultaneously makes me bang my head and laugh
(“it’s hard to find the upslide of a mudslide”) and “Mighty Wings,” which
starts off with a majestic synthesizer melody straight off an 80s soundtrack,
and goes into one of the heaviest riffs and complex time signatures of their
career.They’ve also retained their
knack for great balladry, with “Wheels of the Machine” and the album closing
“Conquerors,” curiously and competently sung by bassist Frankie Poullain.

I’m glad they’re back.Long Live the Darkness.

WHITESNAKE
– The Purple Album

When is a covers album not a covers album?Well,
when it’s a remakes album…except when it isn’t…exactly.Vocalist David Coverdale and his
ever-shifting lineup of Whitesnake released this earlier this year.For fans of Whitesnake not familiar with
David Coverdale’s earlier musical career, the title of this album might seem odd.Indeed you might also think these are all
brand new songs.But Coverdale began his
professional career with what was at the time, one of the biggest rock bands in
the world, Deep Purple.He recorded
three studio albums with Purple, Burn,
Stormbringer, and Come Taste the Band before they
disbanded in 1976.He then recorded two
low-key solo albums, the first of which was titled White Snake – yes, two words.The backing musicians on those albums more or less formed the backbone
of what would become a “band” called Whitesnake.Two of Coverdale’s Purple mates, drummer Ian
Paice and keyboardist Jon Lord eventually became ‘Snake members as well.Sadly Jon Lord passed away in 2012, leading
to David Coverdale reaching out to erstwhile Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore
with the goal of making amends for past animosities, and possibly re-recording
some of the classic Deep Purple songs as a tribute to Lord.The two could not come to an agreement, but
Coverdale had already begun preparing new arrangements on some of the Purple
songs.When discussions with Blackmore
hit a wall, Coverdale’s wife suggested recording the songs and releasing them
as a Whitesnake disc.Thus was born The Purple Album.

Now, I have been a fan of Whitesnake since
they came onto my radar with their blockbuster 1987 album (which gave the world
“Still of the Night,” “Is This Love,” and the hit remake of “Here I Go Again”)
and had gone back and rediscovered the previous Whitesnake albums, which
musically were very different from the flashy, loud, in your face sound
captured on the 1987 album.Eventually I
decided to check out Deep Purple, a band revered by so many of my favourite
bands, not least of which Metallica, Def Leppard, Kiss, Aerosmith, etc.Buying a random Purple compilation introduced
me to the original versions of “Burn” and “Stormbringer.”

I have been very critical of David
Coverdale over these past few years, while remaining a fan.His vocals have sounded pretty beaten up as
of late (I’ve seen some youtube performances that literally made me cringe) and
although I purchased the last two new Whitesnake albums and enjoyed them
overall – his lyrics have simply become cut-and-paste jobs from previous
songs.Having said all of that, I was
intrigued about this album upon hearing about it…and what do you know, I
absolutely love this collection of
songs.

The early Whitesnake (and Deep Purple)
catalogue is a good example of great songs buried under the production of the
day.Example: “Here I Go Again” was a
worldwide #1 song in 1987, but it was originally recorded in 1982.Same song, same arrangement, but listen to
the two versions and it’s pretty obvious why it took the ’87 version for the
song to get its due.Well, that’s kind
of what’s going on here.It isn’t that
there were no good sounding rock albums to emerge from the 1970s, far from it.Roy Thomas Baker’s production work with Queen
has stood the test of time (which is one reason why “Bohemian Rhapsody” became
a hit all over again in 1992 and didn’t sound the least bit out of place on the
airwaves), Ted Templeman’s masterful production job on the debut Montrose album
from 1973, Jack Douglas made Aerosmith sound absolutely huge on 1976’s Rocks,
etc.But the Purple and Whitesnake
stuff?Extremely dated.Which is why I’m so enamoured with this new
Whitesnake album.In many ways these are new songs.Even though most of the songs have had to be
lowered in key to accommodate Coverdale’s voice, these new versions have
supercharged what are some good songs that deserve new life.Keep in mind as well, that the Coverdale
years in DP came at the tail end of their initial run, and are not the songs
that generally come to mind when the words “Deep Purple” are mentioned.So to hear this band of musicians (including
one of my favourite guitarists, Reb Beach of Winger and Dokken fame) tear
through the likes of “Might Just Take Your Life,” Love Child,” “Comin’ Home”
(possibly my favourite song here, and the biggest improvement over the original
version), “Lady Double Dealer,” and really the whole collection, is a joy.Even though they are remakes of songs from
1974 and 1975, The Purple Album just
might be my favourite release to come out in 2015.

QUEENSRYCHE
– Condition Human

The story of Queensryche since 2012 is a
pretty long and convoluted one which I won’t get into here, indeed follow the
link below this blurb where my good friend Matt Phillips (whose writings you’ve
seen here) and myself go through the ‘Ryche saga as of late.No, let’s just talk about this album here.

This is the 2nd Queensryche
album from the Todd La Torre-led band, a follow-up to their excellent 2013
self-titled release.And this is every
bit as good, if not better.Continuing
the trend started last time around, Queensryche have for the most part shed the
eclectic tendencies exhibited on the previous Geoff Tate-led albums which led
the band further and further away from their progressive metal roots.This one is basically old-school metal with
tricky guitar riffs and time signatures, and strong, high vocals from La Torre,
who still sounds enough like Geoff Tate to pull off the classic material but
does have his own sound.

I was one of the fans who took part in the
PledgeMusic campaign started last year to help fund the making of this
album.It took a little longer than
originally expected, but starting this past summer, pledgers started to receive
free downloads of the albums first three songs, “Arrow of Time, “Guardian,” and
“Hellfire,” all good tunes.The rest of
the album did not disappoint.This has
been in my car for weeks now, and grows on me with each listen.The album is heavy, but make no mistake they
haven’t lost their knack for melody.A
couple of fine reprieves from the heaviness with the delicate “Just Us” and the
all-out power balladry of “Bulletproof” fit right in with everything else
here.Fantastic guitar work, great
drumming from the always busy but never over-playing Scott Rockenfield, and
superb vocal work including harmonies…what more could you ask for in a
Queensryche disc?I know some fans have
chosen to take sides and have either planted their feet here, or in the
Tate/Operation: Mindcrime camp.Like Van
Halen/Hagar/Roth, I remain fans of it all.

DEF
LEPPARD – Def Leppard

A late entry into this year’s list, but
good enough to zoom into my personal top 5!For the first time in their history, Def Leppard have simply called
their latest album, Def Leppard…and
really, that just about sums it up.If
you’re a longtime fan, there’s simply nothing here to be disappointed
about.The pressure on a band of this
vintage, especially one who had so much
successin the 80s, is to come
up with material that is anywhere close to the same quality and excitement
level.In fact, this album almost
wasn’t.Originally the plan was to put
out a 2-3 song EP, possibly just to i-tunes, which to an old man like me, isn’t
very appealing (I like having a physical
album in my hands!!)As writing
sessions went on, 2-3 songs turned into the 14 we get here.The first new Def Leppard since 2008 and far
and away the best thing this band has done in decades.Always one of my
favourite bands, the prospect of a new Def Leppard album in the past has left
me uneasily purchasing, listening, and really searching for positive things to
say.That isn’t to say there hasn’t been
decent material along the way, I just found you had to dig for it.Not the case here.There are moments I would have done
differently myself (such as the somewhat Taylor Swift-ish “whoa-oh-oh-ohs” in
lead track and first single, “Let’s Go”) but for the most part, this is
everything a Def Leppard fan could have hoped for in 2015, just a strong
collection of songs.Sure, if you’re one
of those metalheads who are stuck in the “NWOBHM” phase you won’t like this,
but then you haven’t liked anything they did since 1981 anyway.An affliction I’ve always felt that the band
has suffered from, really ever since the early 90s (a horrible time for melodic
rockers like themselves) is that they’ve overthought the songwriting process
and produced music of some quality, but not much excitement.None of that appears to be happening now,
these are for the most part, melodic, anthemic pop-rock songs with all the
usual Def Leppard hallmarks; vocal harmonies galore, guitars galore, and above
all hooks that stay in your head.There
is some experimentation here, such as the very “Another One Bites the Dust”-ish
“Man Enough,” the Led Zeppelin-esque “Battle of My Own,” and the Billy Idol
meets Psychedelic Furs new wave rock of “Invincible.”But “Dangerous,” “Wings of an Angel,”
”All-Time High,” “Broke ‘n’ Brokenhearted,” all classic Def Leppard songs in
the best of ways.This longtime fan is
very pleased, and plans on shouting this album’s praises to all who will
listen.Well done, lads.

P.S. My version of this album came as part
of Classic Rock Magazine’s Fan Pack, including a deluxe magazine featuring
interviews with all five band members, reviews of all their albums, a section
dealing with the various side-projects the guys have done over the years, even
an article on the “mysterious genius” that is their longtime producer “Mutt”
Lange.Plus some art prints and a couple
of keychains, not to mention a couple of “bonus tracks” on the disc itself,
granted they’re simply alternate versions of songs that already appear.It’s also available in vinyl and, get this, cassette
versions but I settled for the CD version…a little something extra for the Def
Leppard fan who wants more than the album itself.

HONOURABLE
MENTIONS:

Europe
– War of Kings

Stop snickering, yes it’s the same five
Swedes who brought “The Final Countdown” to the world, but since 2004 they’re
back, leaner, heavier and this year released a great disc.

Bryan
Adams – Get Up!

Vancouver’s favourite son teams up with
Jeff Lynne and the result is basically a Traveling Wilburys album with Adams on
vocals…short, sweet, to the point, and best of all no boring ballads.

Operation:
Mindcrime – The Key

As mentioned above, I’m still following
what the original Queensryche singer is doing.This is the first album under the O:M name and although it’s not as good
as what his former band is doing, it’s still a decent release with a few
standout songs.

AVOID
AT ALL COSTS:

Bon
Jovi – Burning Bridges

I’m an old-school fan, I thought that
maybe, just maybe they remembered how to rock.They didn’t.This is a 10-song
waste of time.Not worth the cheap
cardboard sleeve it’s housed in.(hangs
head)